With my skirt gathered in one hand, I winded through the stalagmites. The path was slippery, given that there was a path to begin with. Draughting with this much obstacle would be too tricky for me so I resorted to do it the hard way—walk.

Water constantly trickled from the ceiling. It made my hair damp. As I got farther into the cave’s other end, it got darker, the air dank. I listened closely for any sign of danger. So far, fruit bats posed the most threat in the cave and even they were asleep, hanging upside down from the cave’s ceiling.

I quickened my pace. Soon, it would get light outside.

As I reached the mouth of the cave, I glanced back quickly at Vincent. He was still sleeping in the corner where I had left him, which was a good thing because he would be more of a threat to himself and to others when he’s awake.

With a deep breath, I pushed the wispy mesh of vines that draped the mouth of the cave. The opening led to a drop about ten feet high. Gasping for air, I took two steps back.

“That was close,” I murmured, chuckling uneasily.

Small irregular stones jutted out from the rock face, seemingly strong enough to carry my weight. Or I could just jump down. I had survived taller heights than this. So I did, smiling to myself and thinking how lucky I was to be immortal. In seconds, I was flying.

How wrong was I?

For starters, I hit the ground face down. Good thing it was grass-covered. Still knocked the wind out of me though. It didn’t feel like I broke anything but everything hurt terribly. It took me a while to gather enough strength to roll flat on my back. The next several minutes were spent coughing and shaking off the dizziness.

Groaning, I pushed myself up trying not to pay attention to the scratches all over my arms and palms. I was still a bit woozy so I leaned on a nearby tree for support. My knees were shaking. They hurt a bit too. Perhaps it was just the bad landing. My skills were getting rusty.

I had fell from places ten times as high as that cave before. So far, I had (almost) always managed to land without a scratch. Maybe I just need to let myself recharge. Helping Vincent recover last night took a lot out of me.

I limped my way through the thick forest, taking extreme caution. All I could hear were the bird songs and the waves. As the smell of the sea slowly faded, the sky could barely be seen through the thick branches of the redwoods. Like giant towers looming over me, most of them had trunks the size of minivans. The others were a lot bigger. Everywhere I looked, there was nothing but grass and redwood. No fruit-trees. No nuts.

So there goes plan A. I grumbled silently, closing my eyes at the thought of having to hunt and kill animals for food. Just thinking about it made my insides lurch.

Tiredly, I decided on finding water first. Good news. I learned in school that in a forest this big it was sure that there would be a place to get fresh water. The bad news was they didn’t teach you how to find it. So that brought everything down to my instincts.

“My instincts… My instincts? That’s it!” I hissed hysterically to myself. “We’re both gonna die.”

That was when I thought I heard a voice. Not just one. There were several voices. I could hear wobbly wheels being dragged against a rough pavement. The voices seemed to be arguing. And cows. I could hear cows.

Closing my eyes, I tried to listen harder. Enemies? Or not? Enemies wouldn’t bring cows with them, would they?

Concentrating harder, I followed the source of the noise downhill where the redwoods were younger, thinner. My feet mechanically moved ahead of each other until I found a narrow dirt road on the side of the hill that further led down to a valley. It was surrounded by three crags that leaned against each other, making the clearing look like a huge triangle. If a chopper was to hover above the crag, there would be a great probability that the valley would not be spotted.

Tiny squares of different colors—roofs—dotted the huge expanse of the land, giving me a hint that it was inhabited. I followed the trail on the road. It was fresh; an assortment of tire, animal and human tracks. The path sloped down sharply. Every now and then, the dirt under my feet would slide down, taking me with it. I held onto the large, jagged rocks that protruded from the ground. They tore my dress and grazed my hands which never seemed to heal quickly anymore.

A few exhausting minutes later, I found myself entering the outskirts of what looked like a large town. Small trees and bushes grew everywhere that I didn’t know where the forest ended and where the town actually started.

Not too far ahead, I saw the source of the noise I had heard in the woods before. It seemed to be a group of several carriages pulled by horses. A small herd of cattle brought up the rear, guarded by a group of young boys, most of whom were younger than me. Some of them looked Caucasian. Some, I couldn’t quite tell with their brown skin and fair hair.

“Quickly now, boys! Sun’s ‘bout to rise up!” said a stout middle-aged lady from the last carriage.

The woman’s skin was a deep hue of brown made more obvious by her loose taupe clothing that looked similar to a poncho but longer, covering down until her ankles. Rope-braided into a bun on top of her head, her long hair was almost the same shade of her skin with some streaks of gray.

I hid behind the bushes just as she glanced at my direction with big lazy eyes. With my heart rate doubling, I kept my head down. Force of habit. I was wearing Nysmic. There was no way she could see me.

The carriages proceeded with the boys coaxing the cows to move forward.

I heard one of the boys mutter, “Bel’s not in a good mood today,” and I had a hunch that he was talking about the lazy-eyed woman. “We better finish this and get back to Mr. S.”

“Bel is never in the mood when she’s sober,” another boy smirked.

In the shadows, I kept following them until we reached a tall gate made of wrought iron. In the very middle of it was a golden inverted triangle. The dark-skinned lady called Bel jumped down from her carriage, walked in front of the group and placed her hand on the triangle.

In no time, the gate opened with a loud creak. The carriages went ahead one by one. Not until the last cow got in did Bel hobble back up her own carriage and followed the others.

Once the coast was clear, I sneaked in after them.

Inconspicuously, I ducked behind the hedges as I watched the carriages being unloaded. Most of them carried fabrics and tools but I spotted one that had root crops and grains. My stomach’s rumbling seemed to have become louder. But I decided to find food that didn’t need cooking.

About hundreds of stalls lined both sides of the cobblestone pavement. Some were food stands from breads to candied apples to weird shellfish. Some sold vegetables and fruits, most of which I had never seen before. Farther into the town were bigger stores made of stone with glass windows and wooden doors.

Everyone was dressed strangely. Like Bel, all the girls wore loose robes cinched around the waist by braided colorful ribbons. The men, on the other hand wore some kind of long tunic over a pair of baggy trousers. If I hadn’t seen stuff a lot weirder than that, I would definitely think that I had been somehow transported to an alien planet. Or some far away colonial town where people considered that gas stoves and TV as spawns of the devil.

“Dragon fruit! Fresh from Bel’s farm! Two coins each!” called a man holding up a bright pink spiky fruit the size of baseballs.

An old man sat in a corner, playing a tune with his flute. The melody permeated the unsteady noise of people, machinery and animals. It was overwhelming yet I was virtually amused. After running for my life for the last forty eight hours, the place felt rather refreshing. A group of three young women in some kind of elaborate clothing danced in front of a fabric shop, encouraging buyers to dance with them.

Then there was this young girl whose skin was as white as ivory and very light golden hair. She sat behind a small stand full of trinkets and colorful jewelry. I almost froze in the middle of the bustling marketplace.

Shaking my head, I squinted to look closer at the girl. Apart from the hair and eye color, she looked like Millie. On second thoughts, with her gooseberry-colored eyes and fair hair, she looked exactly like Apple. She seemed to be smiling at me even though I was sure I was invisible to her.

“Amethyst,” she said in a cheerful tone, picking up a hair ornament from her display. It was a silver pin with a circular violet crystal in the middle. “For the troubled heart.”

Looking down, I passed by the girl’s stall, dodging a moving cart of vegetables. I didn’t make eye contact. My heart felt like it wanted to jump out of my throat. My whole body shook. There was one thing in my mind: Run!

Had Hector found us? Apple was dead. Millie said she was broken. Then why was she here?

Quickening my pace, I hid behind a group of girls who were practically swooning over some sort of glittering fabric. I kept my head down. I scanned the stores, the stalls, the people. No familiar faces so far. Did she come here alone?

As a wagon full of weird yellow vegetable passed by, I ducked behind it. I crept toward a food stand selling things that were skewered on a stick and pretended to choose from the array of foods that ranged from cured meat to chicken feet. The whole time, I was watching the girl—Apple—in the corner of my eye. She didn’t make a move. She wasn’t even looking at me anymore.

“What d’ya want?” the bearded man behind the stall yelled at me.

I looked over my shoulder.

“Yeah, you!”

Startled, I stepped back. I bumped into a few people and they too were all looking at me.

“Impossible,” I mumbled in confusion.

Without time to think, I ran like mad and went inside the first open door I laid my eyes on. I closed the door behind me. Still panting, I leaned back on the wall.

This couldn’t be. It didn’t make any sense. People weren’t supposed to see me. Unless if these people weren’t just people. What if they were…

“Immortals,” I muttered in shock.

My eyes widened. The realization got me hyperventilating. In seconds, I started to wheeze—something that hadn’t happened since I became an immortal. I tried to take a deep breath. I couldn’t afford to have an attack. Not when I knew that Vincent was left alone and helpless in the cave. If it was true that we were in enemy territory, I would have to get back to him and fast.

Panic began to overwhelm me. I automatically surveyed the area. Shelves upon shelves of fruits and vegetables of sorts filled the small room. It looked like I entered a produce store and there was no one inside. Neat.

Ignoring the tightness in my lungs, I pressed my ear on the door and listened. I heard nothing but the usual noise of the marketplace. Still unconvinced, I peeked through the shop window. People went back to their business as if nothing had happened. Totally not what I was expecting but one thing was for sure: I had to get out of here.

Before all else, first things first. I hurried to the shelves, hoping to find something familiar. The old floorboards creaked under my boots. Most of the fruits looked bizarre to me. At the end of the isle, I found a pile of yellowish-pink apples. My hands moved to get a hold of them. With a sigh, I hesitated, fisting my hands to my sides. I hated stealing with a passion.

I searched my pockets. They were empty. Just my luck, I left all my cash in my bag back with Vincent. Ruefully, I stared at the apples.

The things I do for eternal servitude. Ugh.

“Anything I can do for you?” said a familiar female voice.

I almost jumped back when I saw the lazy-eyed African lady—Bel—standing right beside me. I didn’t even sense her coming. Wordlessly, I looked at her, to the door and then at the apples. The room suddenly became quiet—eerily quiet. The only thing I could hear was my own breathing.

There was a faint smell of liquor as she came nearer. With the woman’s impassive expression, it was hard to predict what she would do next. She just stood there staring blankly at me.

“I…” My tongue felt stiff. “…wanted to buy some apples. But I… remembered I left my wallet at home so… I…I’ll j-just… go,” I stammered, stepping sideways to reach for the door.

The woman sighed. Dispassionately, she crossed her palms together making her flowing sleeves fold down to her elbows. Tribal tattoos covered her arms. From underneath the choker on her neck, I could see several markings too.

“Get one,” she said, barely moving a facial muscle.

My hand was on the latch. I paused to look over my shoulder. “No thanks. I can’t really pay for it.”

“Get one,” she repeated in the same monotonous voice, walking toward the entrance as she did. With her eyes fixed on me, the woman pressed her back against the door.

She sounded to me like I had no choice but to do what she said. Cautiously, I went back to the pile of apples and picked one. I showed it to her, struggling to act casual as I stepped in front of her. With a curt nod, Bel turned her back on me. In silence, she sat down behind the counter and started to wipe the countertop.

Once I was outside Bel’s store, I slinked my way back through the crowd, ducking behind stalls, taking cover behind busy shoppers. Blending in wouldn’t be much of a problem if I wasn’t in a half-shredded, filthy dress.

Before turning up around Apple’s store, I took a dark alleyway and waited. She was still there, offering her trinkets to a couple of young ladies.

I saw a horse wagon about to pass by. In timing, I threw myself onto the back of the wagon. I had to curl and squeeze in with the cargo so I wouldn’t be noticed. It was carrying some sort of sweet smelling thorny fruit that kept on scraping against my arms with every road bump. My lucky day. Ugh.

The wagon slowed down around the outskirts of the town. When I noticed it wasn’t going to head for the gate, I slipped off the wagon and continued on foot.

On my hike back, I kept off the road. The sun was already up, its rays being sifted through the thick branches of the trees. I kept my ears and eyes open. I kept looking behind me, careful to cover my tracks, making sure that no one was following. I had to stop a few times to catch my breath. No matter what I did, it still felt like there wasn’t enough air in my lungs. Exhausted and afraid, I forced myself to move. The only that mattered was my master and the apple inside my pocket. The rest, we would have to figure out later.

When at last, I reached the leveled top of the hill, I ran straight back into the woods. I took one wary look around me before facing the crag where the cave was to be found. Coast was clear.

Taking a deep breath, I reached for a protruding rock a feet over my head. I pulled myself up, finding a dimple to rest my foot on. Then I held onto a hanging tree root. At first two tries, I slid down before making it halfway up to the cave.

On my third attempt, I managed to dig my fingers into a crack to prevent myself from falling. Presently, the privilege to have fear of heights just got erased from my Bill of Rights for Familiars. When I noticed the thick vines dangling from the mouth of the cave, I grabbed onto one and climbed up, breaking into a jog as I landed on safe ground.

Inside the cave, I blinked rapidly, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the lack of light. With my hands outstretched in front of me, I zigzagged deeper into the recesses of the cave.

I looked first at the corner where I had left Vincent sleeping. It was now empty. He was gone.

“Vincent?” My voice shook, barely a whisper as his name scraped out of my throat. “Vincent!” I shouted.

I sounded really scared and I was. Was he captured? Please, no. Before I knew it, I was running.

Out of the blue, someone grabbed my arm and yanked me backward. From the darkness, Vincent stepped closer to me. Like a ghost, his metallic eyes almost glowed with that furious glare. If it was because of panic or his mere ominous presence that made my heart seem to stop, I couldn’t point out.

“Where on earth have you been?!” he managed to say through clenched teeth.

“You scared me!” I complained, letting out a sigh of relief. “Why can’t you just stay where I left you?!”

“I thought you were—“ The furrow between his brows deepened as he saw the scratches on my palms and arms. He stared so hard at them for about half a minute, his jaws tensing one after the other.

With a wry chuckle, I tugged my arms back and took the apple out from my pocket. “Ta-dah!”

“What did you do this time?” he growled. He seemed to be trembling with anger.

I felt my mouth open and close, my forehead creasing involuntarily. “I… got you an apple?”

Without another word, he turned his back on me, his hands clenched to his sides. A second later, he smothered what sounded like a snarl with not much success. Then he started lashing out on a broken stalagmite near his foot. After about three soccer goals, he finally stopped.

Seriously. He needed to be in medication.

“You allowed yourself to get hurt over that apple? Are you goddamn kidding me?!”

“W-what? You… don’t like it?” I mumbled in uncertainty. He was confusing me. “I’ll get something else. Just don’t get mad o—“

“No!” Vincent shouted a lot louder than necessary, forced to face me again. “I kept looking everywhere for you! For hours! I almost lost it! You have no idea. I thought you were…”

He breathed in and exhaled sharply in another failed attempt to suppress his anger. When at last, his light gray eyes were calm enough to meet mine, he held me by my shoulders. His hands were still shaking a little.

“You’re not going to leave my sight without my permission ever again. Are we clear?” he said in a quiet voice that made it impossible for me to keep arguing with him.

“Okay... But you’re overreacting.” I nodded, flopping dejectedly onto the stump of the stalagmite he just destroyed. Still staring at the ground, I offered the fruit to him. “It’s yours.”

“I’m not hungry,” he sniffed, looking away. Coincidentally, his stomach grumbled loud enough for me to hear. He seemed kind of embarrassed as he walked to the other side of the cave.

“Right… I can see that.” I pushed aside the broken limestone with my feet.

“You can have it.”

“Don’t make me throw this off the cliff, Vincent,” I threatened.

“What about you?” Was that concern I heard right there?

“I’ve already eaten mine on the way here,” I took his hand and placed the fruit on his palm.

As I turned around, I swallowed hard. My throat was dry. I was just thankful my stomach was decent enough to not broadcast to the world how hungry I was. Vincent needed it more than I did. If I didn’t lie, I was sure he would make a fuss about it.

In silence, he sat beside me and took a bite. Then another. In no time, he devoured the fruit.

After a few minutes of awkward silence, he stared at the core and asked, “Where did you get this, by the way? And where’s Flynn?”

Before I could answer that, I heard footfalls from the mouth of the cave. Judging by the sound of it, there were more than five people inside the cave with us. I sprung up before my brain could even think my next move.

“What is it?” Vincent asked, alarmed by my reaction.

I was a bit surprised that he hadn’t heard the enemies approaching, much more see their hazy figures in the darkest parts of the caves. But I could. And where we stood, I couldn’t see how much help it was.

“How could I be so careless?” I said under my breath. “I’ve been followed.”

“By who?”

“By people… who can see me. In Nysmic.”

Vincent straightened and held my hand. With his free hand, he touched the glowing number thirteen tattoo on his right forearm. I knew what that meant. He was about to summon his scythe. And I thought this is bad. Really bad.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hey people! Thanks for the wait. I did tell you the updates gonna be a bit late, didn't I? Anyway, thanks to everyone who'd visited the Reapers page. Thinking about self-publishing. I'm about to take a big leap. I'm just hoping I won't crash hard on my butt. Editing Reapers 1 is a pain. Added new things too.  So, yeah. Thanks for the inspiring comments. Next one's gonna be on Tuesday.                         Butterfingers and Kisses, ~~~shim